Love Like Winter, The Missing Frame
by dark's silver shadow
Summary: Mort is introduced to another author, a Catherine Reynolds.His publisher believes they should write a book together.Does Shooter reappear or is he gone for good?This is their story.rated M for language and implied situations nothing too detailed.MortOC
1. The Beginning

alright people. i still have writer's block on my other story but once i see Dead Man's Chest i'll probably have more inspiration.thanks for thereviews ORLANDO-DEPP, Kilala81, and Dark Ninja of Mount Hope. you guys are my only reviewers on Black Caribbean and i luv you guys for it. anyway, until i get more inspiration here's a different story for you johnny lovers : ) if it seems to start to turn to the Sue-side please let me know and help me prevent such a terrible thing from happening. (that goes for any and all of my stories) it would be highly appreciated.

now. enough with the bable and on with the fic. :) hope you enjoy.

* * *

Catherine stood quietly in a corner, succeeding in her desire to stay as unnoticed as possible. All of the other authors in the room seemed so snobbish.

"Ugh. Why couldn't I have had the same publisher as Stephen King or ANYONE I would be familiar with?" Victoria Barksdale, her publisher, made her way to Catherine's corner, interrupting her thoughts.

"Dahling! I'm so glad you came! Are you having a good time so far?"

"Ha-ha-ha-ha. Vicky, do you realize how annoying your voice tends to get once you're in front of all these stuck up piranhas?" Vicky just laughed and seemed to visibly loosen up and become more like a regular person; not some tight assed showbiz robot with an incredibly high pitched voice.

"Well you still haven't answered my question."

sigh "Vicky, all these people are so caught up in themselves that it's unreal. I just don't feel that there's any reason for you to force me to stay any more."

"Well I'm sorry Cathy. I just know that you don't show that pretty face of yours in public enough. This was a great career opportunity. A chance to get your name out to some other authors, dear." The look of mischief was apparent on Vicky's face. Cathy knew that she had some ulterior motive and couldn't guess what on earth it could be. Either way, she didn't have long to ponder before Vicky was hauling her away from the safety of her corner. She tried protesting but to no avail.

They made their way through the room as Vicky eagerly searched for the person she wanted Cathy to meet.

"Vicky why don't you just go ahead and tell me what exactly you're up to. It would make things go so much faster if you did." But there was no time for that as Vicky finally found the person she had been looking for. It was a tall man with shoulder length brown hair with blonde highlights. He was thin but looked like he tried to stay in shape, Catherine couldn't tell anything else because he had his back turned to them. He was dressed up, but then again, so was everyone else. When they did finally reach him Vicky got his attention and greeted him in her usual manner of hugging and pleasantries fitting to those you might hear from two friends who haven't seen each other in years. Catherine felt as if she'd seen this man somewhere before but couldn't quite put her finger on where.

"_Hmmmm…I wonder…"_ But before she could find out exactly who he was she heard the tune of The Used's _Blue And Yellow_ coming from her cell phone.

As she saw who was calling she hurriedly answered and motioned to Vicky that it would only take a few seconds.

* * *

Mort's POV

As the young lady began talking to whoever was on the phone Vicky began speaking to him about and idea she had about a book or something. Mort wasn't really paying much attention because he could have sworn he'd seen the young woman's face somewhere.

She had brown, side-parted hair that reached the bottom of her shoulders with blonde and red highlights that brought out the natural ones already in her hair. They were subtle and looked good on her. She wore a pair of tan pants and a black dressy shirt. She had a pretty face, with brown eyes and as Mort continued to give her a look-over he couldn't help but notice that she had been well endowed…very well endowed in fact.

He continued glancing over her frame, finding she had wide hips that connected to some large thighs that matched the rest of her ample curvature. She wasn't thin but she wasn't over-weight or fat.

"_Looks like she was a well fed country girl if that farmer's tan is anything to go by. Not too bad on the eyes really, she's probably not my type though."_ He then decided to go ahead and continue his conversation with Vicky on how well his next book was going. Until the woman said in a threatening voice loud enough for them to overhear.

"You better not even think about going anywhere near there Ryan." The sound of loud, drunkenly slurred words could be heard before a click. She hung up her phone and looked at them with a fire blazing in her eyes.

"Cathy what's going on?" Vicky asked with concern in her voice.

"Nothing to be worried about Vicky, Ryan's just on a drunken rampage and I need to go make sure my house doesn't get destroyed tonight in the process. I won't be able to sell it if it's ruined ha-ha." She smiled but you could tell that whatever this Ryan had said really fired her up.

"I need to go ahead and leave though, I'm sorry."

"No go ahead. I'll come by in the morning though." Vicky gave this Cathy woman a hug and wished her good night and a save drive. When Vicky turned back Mort decided now was the time to ask.

"So who exactly was that?" Vicky had a blank look there for a second and then exclaimed.

"Oh! I forgot to introduce you both didn't I? Well that was Catherine Reynolds. She puts C. L. Reynolds on her books; perhaps you recognize that name more? Anyway, I wanted to talk to you two about the possibility of doing a collaboration story."

"I don't know. I would have to think about it Vicky."

"Well do because I think it would be great for both of you. She informed me of a bad case of writer's block not too long ago and you said you have it yourself as well. It'd be a great story, I can feel it." Before anything could be said further some old lady entered the room and demanded Vicky's attention.

* * *

next chap is in the works as we speak guys. should be posted later tonight. :) let me hear what you guys think. 


	2. Making Plans, Researching Possibility

The Used-Blue and Yellow

And it's all in how you mix the two

And it starts just where the light exists

It's a feeling that you cannot miss

And it burns a hole

Through everyone that feels it

Well you're never gonna find it

If you're looking for it

Won't come your way

Well you'll never find it

If you're looking for it

Should've done something but I've done it enough

By the way your hands were shaking

Rather waste some time with you

And you never would have thought in the end

How amazing it feels just to live again

It's a feeling that you cannot miss

It burns a hole through everyone that feels it

Should've said something but I've said it enough

By the way my words were faded

Rather waste some time with you

AFI-Summer Shudder

Listen when I say it's real. Real life is undefined. How could you be so missable? Everything you take makes me more unreal. Real lines go undefined how could this be so miserable?

Under the summer rain I burnt away.

You turned away.

Listen. I can't make a sound or feel fine, I kissed the lies.

Why must they be so kissable? Listen as I break the fourth wall's seal.

Gorgeous eyes shine suicide. When will we be invisible? This is the fall.

This is the long way down and our lives look smaller now.

And our lives look so small.

* * *

The next day Catherine woke up at 9:00 A.M.; luckily that bastard Ryan Donovan hadn't shown his sorry ass last night so her house had been left un-vandalized as she slept. She got up and went to the bathroom. After that was done she sat down and booted her computer up; there was a small chance she might think of something worth typing.

After half an hour and many deleted beginnings she finally decides to just give it up.

"There's just no use. Everything I'm writing is crap…maybe later I'll have some better ideas." With this she got up and headed towards her kitchen when there was a knock on the door. Making her way through the forest of boxes she remembered as she reached the door that Vicky was planning on stopping by. That's exactly who it was too, her happy face a sight that no-one would mind to see first thing in the morning.

"I went ahead and brought some breakfast over. Hope you don't mind."

"Oh you're a life saver Vicky. I was about to be forced to dig in the disaster that is now my kitchen. Come on in." Catherine opened the door wider and let Vicky in. As she entered, Vicky stared at all the boxes in confusion until she remembered the little comment from last night about not being able to sell a damaged house very well.

"Where you moving to Cathy; you never said? Nor did you provide a reason."

"Well, I got tired of all the late night stalking from Ryan so I decided to find a nice quiet place that might help me relax and possibly help my writing process as well. There was a nice house over in a place called Tashmore Lake that someone built not too long ago. It has a great view of the lake and everything, but for some reason the people who built it decided to go somewhere else. I don't know why but hey, I'm not complaining though. The place was pretty cheap; it surprised me that this great of a deal was on the market for as long as it was." Vicky got a look of excitement on her face as she heard this and was practically bursting to spill whatever was going on in that head of hers. Catherine hadn't finished her sentence for less than 2 seconds before Vicky jumped in.

"That's fantastic! You see, I have a business proposition for you. Now just hear me out first before you say anything. Agreed?" Catherine just chuckled and said ok.

"Alright, you remember that man I was wanting you to meet last night right? Well that was Morton Rainey and I also proposed to him that you two do a collaboration piece together. You both are great writers but happen to be going through a spout of writers- block at the moment and I just feel it in my gut that it would be a tremendous success. He said he'd think about it and I want you to as well. Last I heard he was still around Tashmore Lake so it's not like it would be out of the way to meet with each other." After getting through her little persuasion speech she took a bite of her McGriddle sandwich and waited patiently as Cathy finished thoughtfully chewing her bite of McDonald's pancake.

"_I don't know… if I do this it wouldn't really hurt anything I guess. I mean, jeeze, the worst that could happen is we end up hating each other, have completely different ideas and the story ends up being a flop. No big deal……"_ "I'll do it…hell, why not. You only live once." Vicky's face broke into a contagious smile and they continued eating their MackyD's food and talking about this and that like true friends.

* * *

At that same time Mort was sitting at his computer in his house at Tashmore Lake. There was nothing on his word document but the blinking cursor. His thoughts kept returning to his publisher's suggestion. At first he didn't think too much of the idea but the more he went over it the better it started to sound. He got up and moved to his bookshelf; before he even thought about writing anything with this woman he wanted to make sure she was at least halfway decent.

"C.L. Reynolds……C.L. Reynolds……hmm….." He mumbled this to himself as he searched for her name among the different authors. "It doesn't look like I've got any of her books." He stood there thinking for a few minutes before deciding to make a trip to a bookstore in the nearest city. He went and grabbed his keys and shoes; after locking up the house he headed further into the cool morning air and to his car. It was going to be hot today according to the radio in his car. As the boring voice of the local station continued to go on and on about this and that Mort reached over and changed it to a different station that actually played music. With the sound of AFI's _Summer Shudder_ coming from the speakers he made his way out of Tashmore and towards the closest city.

* * *

After Vicky had left Catherine decided to finish packing up the rest of her things. Vicky had agreed to come over later to help her move her bed and other furniture to Tashmore. Catherine had a trailer to move the stuff on but she wanted to finish packing everything into the boxes before hauling the heavier things outside. She hadn't planned on moving so soon but that threat from Ryan last night had promises of worse things to come written all over it; so she still had a lot of packing left to do.

sigh "Well…lookin at all this isn't gonna make it pack itself. Guess I'd better get to work." She started at 10:00 A.M. and with non-stop packing and by some miracle managed to finish by 12:30. She took her cell phone from her computer desk, seeing as she had packed her home phone, and called Vicky.

"Hey. I finally finished with the rest of the packing. It was mostly papers, books and stuff like that. Anyway, if you still want to help me move I'm ready for you to come over………….alright……ha-ha….kay. I'll see ya in a bit then……..alright….bye." with that she hung up and then plopped down on the floor for a nap, she didn't get much sleep the night before, had woken up early and just did a whole shit load of packing; so naturally she needed to take a little power nap until Vicky got there.

* * *

When Mort got to the book store it was around 10 after 10. It only took about 30 minutes to get from Tashmore to Manchester. (I got tired of calling it the closes city so I made up a name. if it isn't accurate I'm sorry but deal with it and I say that with the utmost respect) He knew exactly where the Barnes & Nobles was, so it took hardly any time to make it there.

"_If they don't have any of her works here I can try the _Hastings_ across the street._" He thought this as he climbed out of his vehicle, locking it before he went inside.

He went toward one of the computers you used to search and find where whatever you wanted was. He selected the books category and typed in C.L. Reynolds in the "Author:" box. He then moved the mouse over to search and waited as it did so.

Not long after it came up with a list of her works. He looked at what location they were in and set out in the general direction. This particular Barnes & Noble happened to organize their books by author so it was easy to browse for your favorite author. If you only new a title then that's what the search computers were for. This was rather convenient at the time because she had a few books that were considered mystery and some that were romance. (Non-harlequin I might add.)

He picked up a random book and began reading…..and reading…..and reading. He found himself pulled into a story that the crummy blurb on the back did no justice to at all. Mort stopped reading and flipped to the back to look at the normal "about the author" bit. It had the usual picture and short history on her. Nothing out of the ordinary for what you would find in those things; he did learn she's originally from Texas though.

Mort went ahead and paid for the book and decided to head home to finish reading it. Just to make sure he hadn't found a random, lonely bit of good writing in an otherwise worthless story.

* * *

I forgot to put in the disclaimers. Obviously Secret Window isn't mine. Neither do I own Barnes & Noble, Hastings or McDonalds. The songs, obviously, belong to those listed. And I'm gonna say it now; I make no money off any of this. The only things I own are the things I make up in my head, real life things and corporations just happen to get caught in the mix and I don't want to have to explain that I don't own this or don't own that. So please, be understanding people who might want to point stuff like that out, wherever you may be.

Also. Things in _italic_ are thoughts. Just to let you guys know if you hadn't figured it out yet. : ) next chapie on the way. Read. Review. Weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee. : )


	3. Twinkies of Doom

"BEWARE THE FLYING TWINKIE OF DOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!" Catherine and Vicky had just arrived at the lake house in Tashmore and Catherine had found a seemingly innocent box of Twinkies. Upon seeing it she immediately opened it up and commenced throwing them mercilessly at Vicky. Soon they were laughing and running around the yard throwing Twinkies at each other like insane people. Their Twinkie fight moved onto a new looking dock that the former owners had built and Cathy ended up falling in with a huge splash.

Vicky was on her knees, dieing with laughter as Cathy flopped around in the water like a retarded fish.

"Cathy ha-ha-ha-ha come on ha-ha-ha-ha-ha we need to get ha-ha-ha your stuff into ha-ha the ha-ha-ha house. Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha." She was amazed that she managed to finish the sentence considering how much she was laughing but she got it out and started walking back to Cathy's truck; still laughing at Catherine's little fit of retarded hyper-ness.

Cathy swam around in circles for a bit, enjoying the nice cool water before climbing back up onto the dock. As she walked to the truck he shoes made funny squelching noises as she went which mad Vicky giggle.

"You didn't mention how close you were to the other cabin Cathy. Do you know who lives there yet?"

"No, I'm afraid I don't know Vickster. For all I know it may be your dear Mr. Rainey ha-ha-ha."

* * *

Mort had thought he heard some sort of commotion outside. Upon looking out of his window he saw that there were some people over at the, what used to be, abandoned cabin. It was far enough away that you could see that someone was out side but couldn't tell exactly who unless you knew the person. From what he could see they were both females and one was sopping wet, they were taking furniture and things of that sort off of a trailer attached to a maroon or some sort of darker red-ish truck that had a thick silver stripe on side of it._ "Looks like a Chevvy…probably a '93."_

He decided to mind his own business, that and he wanted to finish the last bit of Mr. Reynolds' book.

A few hours later his phone rang right as he read the last sentence. When he answered the phone it was Vicky's cheerful voice that greeted him.

"Hey Mort, how are you?"

"I'm doin alright, how bout you?"

"Well, I helped Catherine move today and since I was in the area I was wanting to know if you'd like to go out to dinner with us. It'd give us a chance to discuss the book deal. So how bout it, if you're not too busy of course."

"Sure, I'll go ahead and come. I'm not really up to anything at the moment anyway. Do you want me to come get you guys or meet up somewhere or what?"

"How bout we pick you up. Where was it that you lived again? I can't exactly remember other than it's somewhere around Tashmore lake."

"That's it. I live right next to the lake." There was an empty space there for a second before Vicky replied with her voice full of excitement.

"Ohhhhh! That's fantastic. I imagine you saw some people in the other little house today. Well. That so happens to be where Cathy moved to. Isn't that just a co-inky-dink? You two are neighbors!" He could hear the voice of Cathy babbling on in the background.

"Cathy….Cathy…..CATHY! SHHH I'm on the phone so you need to calm down…..I know there's a squirrel on T.V……ugh….sorry about that ha-ha-ha she tends to wig out sometimes, especially since she just ate a Snickers bar. Ha-ha-ha."

"Ha-ha. No problem. Anyway, do you want me to just walk over there?"

"Sure, that would work. I'll talk to you in a bit then."

"Alright, bye Vicky."

"Bye Mort."

* * *

Vicky hung up the phone and then picked up one of the pillows off the couch and started beating Cathy with it.

"You-whack-need-whack-to-whack-calm down because-whack-we're goin out to dinner-whack whack whack. Understand? -whack-"

"Ha-ha-ha. Alright, alright; jeberz."

* * *

A couple minutes later there was a knock on the door. Vicky went to answer it because Cathy was digging around for some non-wet sneakers.

"Hey Mort. Come on in; hope you don't mind the mess. She did just move in today so…yeah ha-ha."

"Oh I don't mind." Before he said anything else there was an exclamation of "I FOUND IT!" and a Vans brand shoe was hurled out into the middle of the floor, not too far from a matching one. They were black with a bit of pink and had a white stripe on both sides. The laces were pink and black and were supposed to look like it had flames on it. Shortly following the shoe was the woman from the other night, she had faded blue jeans and a Lynyrd Skynyrd shirt on. After she finally slipped the shoes onto her feet she looked up and saw that there was an unfamiliar witness to her moment of retarded-ness.

"Aha-ha. Well…hello. Ha-ha-ha. I'm Catherine Reynolds." She walked over to them, looked up at him with a kind and friendly smile and gave a firm, but not too firm, handshake. Now that she was standing next to him he guessed that she was around 5'3". He was 5'9".

"Hi. I'm Morton Rainey; it's a pleasure to meet you." He looked into her brown eyes and saw something behind them that he knew she didn't show on the outside. What it was he couldn't quite name, but he saw it there. And she saw the same in his eyes.

* * *

hope you guys like it : ) i'm writin the rest right after i get this posted. please review. if you did i'd dress up like a monkey and do a dance for you. :)


	4. Inner Thoughts

**Bold.inner voice that argued with mort in movie**

_Italics.still equal thoughts_

* * *

"So what do you guys feel like eating? It's on me tonight." Cathy had looked like she was lost in thought about something when she realized that Vicky was talking to them. She had just got a great idea for a plot-line. _"I can work on that later."_

"Well Vicky, do you think those Twinkies are still worth eating? Ha-ha-ha-ha."

"Yeah. About those, what's the story behind that? I just noticed them all over the yard out there." Mort looked from Vicky to Catherine and laughed at what he heard next.

"Cathy the Great and Retarded decided to wage war on me using Twinkies as ammo. Resulting in her falling into the lake and flopping around like some retarded fish I've never seen or heard of before."

"Well come on. What did you expect from me? Those Twinkies were insubordinate and needed to be taught a lesson before they turned all my troops against me, and what better way than to use them as shrapnel?" Mort couldn't help but laugh as Vicky just gave her a blank look.

"Sometimes I can't help but wonder how many times you were dropped on your head as a child Cathy. Anyway, what do you guys think about going to eat some steak. I know a good steak house that's not too far from here."

"Steak's fine by me Vick."

"Steak will work since you guys don't wanna go salvage Twinkies. We can take my truck if it's ok by you Mort."

"No that's fine."

"Alrighty then. Everyone load up so we can get this show on the road."

* * *

Vicky got in the middle and let Mort have shotgun while Cathy drove. On the way to the restaurant Vicky helped them get to know each other a bit more. By the time they sat down and started looking at menus it was like they were all good friends out for a night on the town. 

"_Catherine sure is an interesting person. She's friendly, definitely silly at times but can provide intelligent conversation when engaged so. She can definitely write and it sure wouldn't hurt anything if we did a book together."_

"**Well wait a minute there champ. You so sure about this? What if HE decides to come back? What then? What if she finds out? How do you think she'd handle that?"**

"_I don't know. I doubt he'll come back. There's nothing to worry about. It's not like we'll get any further than friendship anyway so there's nothing to worry about. It's professional"_

"**Whatever you say pal. I'll keep a look out for you just in case though."**

Around this time the ladies came back from the bathroom, stopping his inner conversation with himself.

"So Mort, did you make up your mind yet? I promise that if you agree I won't steal all your left shoes."

"Ha-ha-ha. What on earth would you do with my left shoes Cathy? Or do I even want to know?" She just smiled and sat down, she stopped being silly and started acting more like the professional she could be when she felt like it.

"Seriously though Mort, I really think it would be a blast. The worst that could happen is that it turns out to be a flop, but with as good a writer as you are I don't think that'll happen. I don't know if you've read any of my books but I happen to be a fan of yours so I know that this could be a big success." Mort sat staring into her eyes thinking about everything one more time before he gave his answer.

"**Go ahead Mort. It won't hurt nothin."**

"_Hold on. I thought you were against this. What made you change your mind?"_

"**It'll do you good to associate with someone other than some voice in your head."**

"So what do ya say Mort? Are you willin to put up with me long enough to write a book?" Mort just smiled at her from across the table and leaned forward with his arm stretched out to her.

"I think we got ourselves an agreement Cathy." She broke into a grin and put her hand in his; this time it was softer though. Not like their first handshake. That one was meant for a good first impression, in this one Mort could feel femininity in this one that appealed to the male in him.

"_Whoah. Hold on now. You should stop this before it starts. There's no way you two will end up more than friends."_

"**That and don't forget she originates from Texas. She grew up in the country, that 'feminine' hand has calluses from where she had built fences or roped cows or some shit like that. She can hold her own. Which is another reason that changed my mind; if HE ever decided to show himself again she wouldn't be as helpless as some pampered rich bitch prissy ass that had done hardly any work in her life."**

"_Wow…that was a mouthful."_

"**Shut up. Pay attention to what's goin on right now."** At the time they were heading out to the truck. The whole time Mort had been talking with his inner voice he had been half involved with his conversation with Vicky and Catherine. They were talking about how things were going to work and whatnot when Mort got an idea. What if they stayed at the same place while they were writing the book? That way they could get to know each other's process better and be able to work more efficiently. Yes they lived within walking distance but if they stayed in the same house they would be able to communicate that much faster. He explained this to them and Cathy actually thought it was a great idea that made perfect sense.

* * *

On the ride back they agreed that since today was Saturday, Monday would be the perfect day for her to 'move in'. That way she could finish unpacking at her place and get everything together. The reason his house would be home base is because he already has all his computer stuff fixed up and everything; where as hers was still packed up and all she had to do was take it over there. 

Mort had insisted that they drop Vicky off first since she had to go into the office in the morning and it was already 10:30 P.M. She told them goodnight and that she'd call them to see how things were going sometime next week.

* * *

As they drove back toTashmoreMort and Cathy talked at first but after a while they got pulled inside their heads. To anyone who wasn't an author or someone who was unused to being around them might have thought the silence awkward. In reality, they were just lost in a world of ideas like writers are prone to be. 

Mort broke from his thoughts and looked over at Catherine. The cab of the truck was dark except for where she was sitting due to the gages; this allowed him a chance to examine her without getting noticed.

"_I wonder where the scars on her right hand came from…I noticed them during dinner but didn't say anything. Hm…I'm sure I'll find out later. But what about me…what about the voices? They still haven't gone away…they did for a while but now they're back…I wonder why."_ She was talking to him but what had she said?

"Do you have any pets?"

"Oh. Yes I have a little golden lab named Chica and a kitten with mixed colors named Bump. I got them a few months ago. I used to have a dog but it died and it got lonely after a while."

"I see. They sound adorable. Well; here we are; if you need anything between now and Monday feel free to stop by uninvited. Me case es su casa. Ha-ha-ha." She was smiling that warm smile of hers again.

"_Don't get in too deep just yet Mort."_

"Sure thing, Catherine; goodnight."

"Goodnight Mort." With that he shut the passenger side door and watched her drive to her house. She waved to him before she went inside.

"The next few months are gonna be interesting; in the least." With that, Mort himself went inside. Greeted by his puppy and kitten.

* * *

not my best chapter but i needed something to get from point A to point B. please review and let me know how you guys are liking this. i do have anonymous reviews enabled on both stories so ...yeah just lettin those who have no user name know. hope to be updating soon :) talk to you guys laterskins. 


	5. Getting Settled

Eeeeeeeeeeeeeee. I'm sorry guys. My inspiration was drained there for a while but I'm back :) In the last chapter I said she had scars on her right hand but I meant to say left. Sorry. I know it's a non-important detail but meh…any-whoooooooo. School's coming up fast and I have summer marching practice that starts in a week / still not 100 sure if I'm the one playing bass guitar when we march to Free Bird but my chances are reeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeally really good. So wish me luck:) back to my original thought though. When school starts and everything, my update schedule might be helter skelter but I WILL update I P-R-O-M-I-S-E! so on with the story :) by the way. I'm deciding to mix the book and movie cannon a bit in that Mort has a big house-like place now, like in the book. His study is upstairs now though, for those who have read Stephen King's story. And another thing Chica is now Chico. Sorry for all the changes, I just decided that both his pets should be male. Don't ask me why because I can't explain why; I just felt like it would be the best answer I could give.

* * *

Monday. Catherine has just set up her desktop computer stuff on a desk next to Mort's in the study upstairs. Her laptop is downstairs charging and they just got through configuring her computer to accept the wireless internet Mort just got.

Once that was finished they decided to start brainstorming. And so they sat…and sat….and sat for god knows how long.

"After consulting my watch I propose we find something to eat. I'm staaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaarviiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiing." Mort looked at his watch and it was 12:45. He used to have nothing but corn around the house but since he knew Catherine was coming he decided to stock up.

"Yeah. I think it's just about time to take a break." Things were still just a tad bit awkward, like having a new friend over to your house for the first time…..well that was exactly what it was actually.

They both headed down stairs; when in the kitchen she declared that she would fix lunch today. So Mort just sat at the table and kept her company.

They talked for a while and got even better acquainted. It was unusual that they would be so familiar with each other after such a short time but with her open friendliness it was hard not to act like they had known each other since grade-school. (That and I'm too lazy to make the plot drag out so I'm putting the awkward just met phase in the express lane)

As Mort sat watching her grab all the things she needed to feed her craving for pancakes, he started getting ideas for the start of a story. It was nothing more than a beginning, no plot; just this. He got up and went upstairs before he lost his idea.

Catherine had turned to ask if he wanted any fruit with his pancakes to find the kitchen empty. She stopped and heard the sound of typing and knew that inspiration had hit him.

"_Well at least one of us has had some luck."_ She decided to take a while to make their lunch in order to give him plenty of time to get his ideas out.

* * *

A while later she had eggs, bacon and pancakes made with a bowl of watermelon, cantaloupe, strawberries and grapes to go with it. She walked to the living room and looked up to where his computer was and still heard the tapping of the keyboard. She decided to go up the stairs. She did so a bit too quiet apparently and startled the zoned in Mort when she touched his shoulder.

"I'm sorry. I thought you heard me come up the stairs. I just wanted to let you know lunch is ready."

"Oh no, it's fine. I tend to block stuff out when I write. I become oblivious to what's around me." He chuckled at himself.

"I get the same way don't worry lol." (I'm lazy so lol means Laugh Out Loud. It's a lot easier than wrighting ha-ha-ha all the time. That and ha-ha-ha seems so robotic to me)

As they were eating Catherine asked what he had been writing and he explained that he had no plot ideas but he did have a good beginning and two characters; Mathew and Christine.

They finished eating and went back upstairs. Catherine promptly stole his seat with a victorious laugh, like a child who has made a great accomplishment, and began reading. She was leaning her elbows on the desk and seemed to really get into the story. You could tell that she was in her own little world that nothing could touch when uninvited.

She finished reading what he had and got up with a distracted look on her face. She was concentrating on her thoughts and merely went through the necessary motions required to start typing in a new word document on her own computer. When she was finished she turned in her rolly-chair until she was facing Mort.

"Would you like to read good sir?"

"I'd be delighted fair lady" Both of them were smiling as he made his way over to her computer. She allowed him the honor of sitting in her favorite chair and he then read her tweaked and extended version of what he had written earlier. It seemed like it had more direction to it. They then spent a few hours discussing a game plan. What they decided was that they would just let the story take them where it willed. Let the plot figure itself out as they went. Whatever they were inspired to write would be what went in the story.

It was nearly 6:30 when they finished talking, where the time went was a mystery. Catherine was heading over to her house to grab her clothes and things that she would need to live at Mort's house. When she got back he showed her to the guest room that was also upstairs and next to his room and the bathroom was across the hall.

They decided a simple supper of hotdogs would work; so Mort volunteered to make them. As he was doing so, Catherine was unpacking her things and putting them in the right spots. She then settled down on her bed and began reading the book she had just gotten not too long ago. As she was reading she noticed her door being pushed open. When she looked up though…no one was there; she set her book down without bothering to mark the page since she was only on page two. She heard something at the foot of the big four poster bed she was in so she warily crawled over and peeked over the edge. That's when she spotted two cute little fuzz-balls playing around with each other in a mock fight. A huge smile came over her features as she sat watching them.

"Awwwwwwww, you guys are so cuuute." She reached down and picked both of them up and set them on the bed. They then began climbing all over her, the kitten deciding to play with a string on her green, short-sleeved shirt; while the puppy stood on top of her blue jean clad legs, just a pantin away with a look as if he were king of the world. He then decided to run up her back and perch on her shoulder-blades before he started licking the skin on her face and neck that was unprotected by her hair, which she had unfortunately put up in a pony tail not too long ago. She laughed and squirmed but was helpless because anytime she tried to move her arm the kitten would attack it and she couldn't reach the pup with her other arm.

When Mort went up to tell Catherine that supper was ready when he heard squeals and giggling coming from her room; when he looked he saw her lying on her stomach at the foot of her bed with Bump attacking her arm and Chico licking her like there's no tomorrow. He chuckled as he went over in front of her and knelt down so that he was eye to eye with her.

"Need some help there?" The squealing and giggling continued but she managed to get out a yes. So, laughing at her situation, he stood up and plucked Chico off of his helpless lick-victim. Catherine was then free to grab the little kitten, roll over and set it on her stomach. She then started petting her until she was calmly laying on her, purring contently.

"I see that Bump and Chico have introduced themselves thoroughly."

"Lol Oh they sure did. Is the food ready by the way?"

"Yeah. That's why I originally came up here." He then put Chico back on Catherine's bed; he had been standing there petting him the whole time in hopes off calming him but there was no such luck. He was too excited about having someone new in the house; he started licking her again. She just laughed as she got up and set Bump down on her bed.

* * *

After they ate Catherine declared that she was going to take a shower to an oblivious Mort sitting at his computer. When she finished she came out in black shorts and an old Dallas Cowboys jersey. Mort was sitting at his computer still, but he wasn't typing at the moment. It was only 8 or 9 so she decided to go mess around on her computer for a while before she went to her room. She sat down, put on her headphones which were blue and had a silver patch on them and they were the kind that were like the ear plug type but they had a thing that hooked around your ear. (SONY makes them I don't remember the actual name for them) She brought up Windows Media Player and decided to listen to H.I.M.-_Greatest Love Songs, Vol. 666_ and _Dark Light _(album titles). She then signed on to her MSN account to see who was online. No-one, unfortunately, so she just sat there listening to her music and doodling on some paper.

After a while; Mort noticed her now sleeping form. The moving and everything must have made her tired. Her hair was still wet, so she had obviously taken her shower.

He saved his document and made his computer go into hibernation. He stood up and stretched his muscles, stiff from the long lack of use. When Mort walked over to her, he saw her drawing. It was a heart with these designs, and on another page it was the same thing but smaller with another form of some sort. They were really interesting. (Go to my profile for a link to the pictures.) Certain thoughts threatened to come forward but he shook his head as if physically shaking them away.

Catherine was in her room sleeping now and he was in the bathroom, just about to take his shower. He stripped out of his pants and shirt; then his boxers and climbed into the relaxing warmth of the water coming from the shower head. Then a though struck him from out of no-where. _"Cathy was in here not too long ago…in this very shower…nak-"** "STOP! I shouldn't be thinking about her that way. We just met! She's my friend and nothing else." **"Sure. Keep telling yourself that." _

"Shut up already." His inner voice obeyed the mumbled command and fell silent. But he still couldn't keep its words from ringing in his ears. Just starting to think about her stirred something in him now…it wasn't very strong but he had no doubt that if he didn't nip this thing in the bud it would turn into something completely out of control.


	6. Return of the Shovel

"WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOoooooooooooooooOOOOOOOOooooooOOOOOOOOOOOooooooooOUCH!" /thwump thwump thwump thwump thwump thwump/ She had been spinning in her rolly computer chair when she had suddenly hit the wall and started falling all /thump/ the way /oof/ down /thud/ the stairs. /crash/

Mort came running out of his room, his hair a mess of blonde and brown, in nothing but his boxers. :)

"Wha? What's going on?" The poor guy was half asleep. When he heard Cathy calling from the foot of the stairs.

"I'm fine. I'm fine." Mort walked to the top of the stair case to find Cathy in a pile consisting of herself and her chair at the bottom. She looked up at him, "Would you like some breakfast?"

"lol Cathy, I think you should untangle yourself from the chair first." She looked thoughtful for a minute before answering. "You know, Mort, you might just be right. /giggle/"

Breakfast that morning consisted of waffles and bacon. After eating they both went up to their computers and tried to get some work done. Mort seemed to be on a roll while Cathy sat listening to music, playing with her slinky, and staring at the blinking cursor that was currently mocking her shamlessly. She then turned off her music and stood up.

"I'm gonna go get some fresh air. I'll be back in a bit."

"All right." Was the distracted reply from the rapidly typing Mort.

As Cathy walked along the lake shore she looked over towards her house to see a car. Not just any car. Her eyes hardened quickly.

"Ryan." She made her way as fast as she could over to her house. She checked inside his car but he wasn't in there. Her door was wide open though. _"__ooooooooo__ he better not be messing with anything!"_ Stepped inside to find her house a complete mess; books were knocked onto the floor, papers scattered everywhere, furniture tipped over. Everything was just in complete disarray. She cautiously made her way toward the light that was on in her bedroom; she stood in the doorway to find Ryan in a drunken rampage, completely tearing her room apart and swearing to himself in a drunken slur.

"That whore thinks she can leave me. I'll show her." He turned around at that moment and saw her standing there. His face broke into a false look of friendliness.

"Well, speak of the devil. How you been Cathy?"

"Leave right now Ryan. It's over and you know it. So stop being so pathetic, you're embarrassing yourself." At that his rage increased tenfold and he came at her so fast she didn't have a chance to defend herself. He was gripping her throat viciously, her world was slowly starting to go black before she punched square on the chin. This threw him off long enough for her to wriggle out of his grasp and run down the hall, into the living room, and to her phone. She was going to call the cops before one of them got hurt but wouldn't ya know, the phone cord was cut. She turned just in time to see him coming toward her, she kicked him in the stomach and ran outside. She was trying to outrun him to Mort's house but Ryan caught up to her and shoved her into the lake. When she came up he was right next to her; he took her head and savagely shoved it beneath the water.

"If I can't have you then no one else will, you whore. This is what you deserve for cheating on me." He was yelling out, venting what he thought was his righteous anger.

Cathy managed to maneuver herself so that her feet were under her, and she pushed up as hard as she could. Throwing him off of her by the sudden movement, she quickly got out of his reach and began trying to run to Mort's again.

She managed to get into the front yard but Ryan was right behind her. He tripped her up, she ended up landing on her ankle wrong, twisting it painfully and severely spraining it. She was on the ground cradling her ankle until the pain would allow her to get back up.

"This is the only way Cathy." She looked up to see him coming at her with a shovel! She rolled over and pushed herself up. Ignoring the pain she charged at him, trying to wrestle it from his grasp. He punched her on the mouth with enough force to knock her down. As soon as she fell he hit her with the broad side of the shovel, right on the back. Before this she hadn't made a single utterance of pain, but that hurt like a mother.

"AHHH! YOU BASTARD!" She rolled out of the way but not before he hit her again. She got up and tried again to get the shovel out of his hands but he shoved her back against a tree and lifted her up off the ground. Trying to choke her with the handle; she kicked him in the nuts and pushed him away, but he was so fucking drunk that he barely even felt the blow. He just come back at her and began punching her in the face and beating her down with the shovel. _"All right, I've had it with this shit. He's breaking my bones, now I'm gonna break his. No more miss nice girl."_ She was so pissed that she was thinking clearly.

She timed her next move perfectly. She grabbed the edge of the shovel, slightly cutting her hands. She then kicked out at his knee cap with as much force as she could. As he went down she forced her body to stand up, while wrenching the shovel from him. she then beat him with it, breaking a few ribs and kicked him in the face a few times. Making damn sure he came away from this looking much worse than she did. At this time Mort had just come out of his comatose writing stance and was running out to help.

Ryan suddenly did the same thing she did. He grabbed the shovel and overthrew her. He then began beating the hell out of her in turn while she punched, kicked and did everything in her power to get him back between the shovel blows.

Mort came up and punched him hard on the jaw. Knocking him over long enough for Cathy to kick him one last time before collapsing in a bloody heap. They were both unconscious. That last punch was enough to knock the drunken bastard out. Mort went back into the house to give Vicky a call. He explained what he had seen and she said she was on her way. He told her to meet them at the hospital in Manchester.

After he hung up with Vicky, he went outside and found some rope to tie who he assumed was Ryan up. He then put him in the back of his vehicle before going to check on Cathy.

_"God she looks terrible."_

_"Shut up."_ He gently picked her up and carried her over to his car. He'd call the cops but she definitely needed medical attention. Badly needed it was the right words actually. That and the cops in Tashmore still hated him.

**"You need to calm yourself down pilgrim. She ain't gonna die.**** She just has some broken bones and a few bad scrapes."**

"Yeah? Then why is she unconscious? You ignorant hick!"

**"I'm gonna just ignore that cause I know you're upset."**

"Whatever." Mort ignored Shooter and started his vehicle. He then drove as fast as he could to Manchester and checked her into the hospital. He explained to the hospital people that the guy in the back of his vehicle was the one that started the fight and asked them to call the cops. They agreed to do so and went ahead and treated him as well.

"Geeze. This guy's in worse shape than she is. Did you do this?"

"No. She did." said Mort.

"Wow. I'd hate to get on her shit list." The EMT started to wheel Ryan back to the hospital. He'd get fixed up and then get what he deserved from the cops.

* * *

Mort sat next to Cathy's hospital bed. Vicky had just left.

The blood was all cleaned off of her now. Her face was just starting to bruise and swell. The doctor said that there were broken bones in her arm and that luckily none in her face, back, leg or ribs broke. Just her arm; it was a miracle. She did have many cuts; there would be many bruises and some swelling and soreness. But no brain swelling from the blows to the head. So it was all good. She just needed rest and maybe some pain killers.

_"Thank god."_

_"What of it?"_

His inner voice then fell silent. Mort wished that he just say what he meant instead of talking in riddles. It got really frustrating sometimes.

"Oh Cathy, I'm so sorry I didn't hear you sooner."

"It's ok Mort." He looked up at her in surprise. Her eyes were open and she was doing her best to smile. Her body looked so fragile at the moment but her voice came out surprisingly strong.

"I'm alright. I promise. How's Ryan? Did I get him worse? Or did he win this round?"

"Lol. No you definitely won this round. He looks ten times worse than you. And he has broken bones to boot. You only managed to get a broken arm somehow."

She gave a semblance of a smirk at that.

"It's cause I drink all my milk and eat all my veggitibbles."(I misspelled it deliberately guys)

They both laughed a little at that but she had to stop because it made her hurt.

* * *

When the hospital released her Mort made sure she was as comfortable as possible on the ride back to his house. She couldn't help but smile as he acted like an old mother hen. It was actually kind of cute.

Mort helped her into the house and asked whether she wanted to stay downstairs or if she wanted to go upstairs. She smiled.

"I think I'd like to be cooped-up upstairs. That way I can get to my main computer and force you to bring my food upstairs." Mort managed to relax and smile.

"Ah, there it is. I knew I could get you to smile. Lol." She gave a big yawn then. "I really need to go to sleep right now though. Not to rush you or anything. But I'm about to pass out."

"Oh. Sorry."

"It's fine. Just help me upstairs." Mort picked her up out of the wheel chair and began carrying her upstairs. The doctors said that it would take a couple of days but she would be able to walk soon. All the swelling and injury to her legs was too much and she just couldn't support her weight. No matter how hard she tried.

Mort carefully carried her into her room and placed her on her bed as gently as he possibly could. He then put a light blanket over her and made sure she had plenty of pillows. And her book…and her lap top.

"lol Mort, thank you. You can stop now. I have plenty to preoccupy me. I'm probably going to sleep most of the time though."

He smiled back at her.

"Ok. If you need anything just call me."

"K." He walked out of her room and she heard him go downstairs. She smiled, _"Such a sweet guy."_ and fell asleep.

Mort went downstairs to get her painkillers out of the car. When he went back up and checked on her she was already fast asleep. Her face was still puffy but it was starting to go away thanks to the medicine. He smiled as she murmured gibberish in her sleep. He then turned and began typing at his computer.


End file.
